APPARATUS FOR USE IN AN AUTOMATED FUEL AUTHORIZATION PROGRAM REQUIRING DATA TO BE DYNAMICALLY RETRIEVED FROM A VEHICLE DATA BUS DURING FUEL AUTHORIZATION

• US 20140195044A1
• Filed: 03/11/2014
• Published: 07/10/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zonar Systems, Inc. (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Zonar Systems, Inc. (Continental AG)
• Inventors: MCQUADE, CHARLES MICHAEL, FADLER, RICK
• Granted Patent: US 9,815,681 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/237
• CPC Class Codes: B67D 7/00 Apparatus or devices for transferring liquids from bulk storage containers or reservoirs into vehicles or into portable containers, e.g. for retail sale purposes general disposition of plant in stations for supplying fuel to vehicles B60S5/02; for filling or emptying locomotive water tanks, e.g. water columns, B61K11/00; for refuelling aircraft during flight B64D39/00; liquid- handling ground installations specially adapted for fuelling stationary aircraft B64F1/28
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/44 Program or device authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2111 Location-sensitive, e.g. geographical location, GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/805 Lightweight hardware, e.g. radio-frequency identification [RFID] or sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/84 Vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3215 using a plurality of channels network architectures or network communication protocols using different networks H04L63/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3226 using a predetermined code, e.g. password, passphrase or PIN network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using passwords in a packet data network H04L63/083

Abstract

Described herein is a fuel authorization program that requires data to be dynamically retrieved from a vehicle data bus during the fuel authorization process. This can be implemented using a smart cable that is installed in enrolled vehicles. The smart cable includes a housing suitable for commercial environments, a cable to logically couple the smart cable to the vehicle data bus, a second data link to be used to logically couple the smart cable to a fuel authorization “puck” in a vehicle, and a controller. The puck handles communication with the fuel vendor. The controller automatically implements the functions responding to a query from the puck received over the second data link by dynamically acquiring data from the vehicle data bus using the first data link, and conveying the data to the puck using the second data link.

Claims

1. A smart cable to be installed in on a vehicle participating in a fuel authorization program, where the fuel authorization program is based on exchanging data dynamically extracted from a vehicle data bus and a fuel vendor, comprising:

(a) a housing suitable for commercial environments;

(b) a first data link to be used to logically couple the smart cable to a vehicle data bus;

(c) a second data link to be used to logically couple the smart cable to a second fuel authorization component in a vehicle; and

(d) a controller disposed in the housing, the controller being logically coupled to the first data link and the second data link, the controller automatically implementing the functions of;

(i) automatically responding to a query from a second fuel authorization component that is received over the second data link by using the first data link to dynamically acquire at least some of data required for fuel authorization from a vehicle data bus; and

(ii) upon retrieving the data from the vehicle data bus, automatically conveying the data to a second fuel authorization component using the second data link.

2. The smart cable of claim 1, wherein the data required for fuel authorization the controller is configured to dynamically acquire from a vehicle data bus comprises the vehicle'"'"'s vehicle identification number (VIN).

3. The smart cable of claim 1, wherein the first data link comprises a hard wire data link.

4. The smart cable of claim 3, wherein the second data link comprises a short range radiofrequency component.

5. The smart cable of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to dynamically acquire additional data from a vehicle data bus, the additional data comprising at least one of the following types of data:

(a) mileage data;

(b) engine hour data;

(c) fault code data;

(d) fuel use data; and

(e) fuel tank level data.

6. A smart cable to be installed in on a vehicle participating in a fuel authorization program, where the fuel authorization program is based on exchanging data dynamically extracted from a vehicle data bus and a fuel vendor, comprising:

(a) a housing suitable for commercial environments;

(b) a first data link to be used to logically couple the smart cable to a vehicle data bus and to receive electrical power, the first data link comprising a cable component extending outwardly and away from the housing;

(c) a second data link to be used to logically couple the smart cable to a second fuel authorization component in a vehicle, the second data link comprising a cable component extending outwardly and away from the housing; and

(d) a controller disposed in the housing, the controller being logically coupled to the first data link and the second data link, the controller automatically implementing the functions of;

(i) automatically responding to a query from a second fuel authorization component that is received over the second data link by using the first data link to dynamically acquire at least some of data required for fuel authorization from a vehicle data bus; and

(ii) upon retrieving the data from the vehicle data bus, automatically conveying the data to a second fuel authorization component using the second data link.

7. The smart cable of claim 6, wherein the data required for fuel authorization the controller is configured to dynamically acquire from a vehicle data bus comprises the vehicle'"'"'s vehicle identification number (VIN).

8. The smart cable of claim 6, wherein the controller is configured to dynamically acquire additional data from a vehicle data bus, the additional data comprising at least one of the following types of data:

(a) mileage data;

(b) engine hour data;

(c) fault code data;

(d) fuel use data; and

(e) fuel tank level data.

9. A smart cable to be installed in on a vehicle participating in a fuel authorization program, where the fuel authorization program is based on exchanging data dynamically extracted from a vehicle data bus and a fuel vendor, comprising:

(a) a housing suitable for commercial environments;

(b) a first data link to be used to logically couple the smart cable to a vehicle data bus and to receive electrical power, the first data link comprising a cable component extending outwardly and away from the housing;

(c) a second data link to be used to logically couple the smart cable to a second fuel authorization component in a vehicle, the second data link comprising a comprises a short range radiofrequency component; and

(d) a controller disposed in the housing, the controller being logically coupled to the first data link and the second data link, the controller automatically implementing the functions of;

(i) automatically responding to a query from a second fuel authorization component that is received over the second data link by using the first data link to dynamically acquire at least some of data required for fuel authorization from a vehicle data bus; and

(ii) upon retrieving the data from the vehicle data bus, automatically conveying the data to a second fuel authorization component using the second data link.

10. The smart cable of claim 9, wherein the data required for fuel authorization the controller is configured to dynamically acquire from a vehicle data bus comprises the vehicle'"'"'s vehicle identification number (VIN).

11. The smart cable of claim 9, wherein the controller is configured to dynamically acquire additional data from a vehicle data bus, the additional data comprising at least one of the following types of data:

(a) mileage data;

(b) engine hour data;

(c) fault code data;

(d) fuel use data; and

(e) fuel tank level data.